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Monday, February 18, 2013

Christine Young Is Happy To Host The Doubting Heart

Please welcome Brenda Gayle author of The Doubting Heart. Brenda will award one commenter at every stop a a free digital download of Father of the Bride?, a short story being released by The Wild Rose Press, and one randomly drawn commenter on the tour will receive a $50 Amazon gift card. Also, a signed copy of the first book in the series, The Hungry Heart (US/Canada Only), or a digital copy if an international winner, will be awarded to a randomly drawn host.

Please leave a comment for a chance to win.

The Doubting Heart

by Brenda Gayle

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB:

A woman determined
to prove her friend was murdered questions her sanity when his look-alike
appears.

When Shelby Holt convinces a friend to work at
Wildhorse Pass tourist ranch, she never imagines he will die there. The police
say Michael's death was accidental, but Shelby doesn't believe it. Haunted by
guilt, she puts her academic career on hold to investigate.

Just back from the Middle East, Chad Graham is
guilt-ridden over Michael's death too. He poses as a ranch hand at Wildhorse
Pass to investigate the woman claiming his cousin's death is suspicious. Were
the police wrong? Or is Shelby hiding something?

Shelby knows she can't trust her heart, but when it
comes to Chad, she can't trust her head either. He looks uncannily like
Michael. Yet even as their distrust deepens, sensual attraction simmers between
them. The closer Shelby and Chad get to answers—and to each other—the closer
they get to danger…and to a killer who will stop at nothing to avoid discovery.

Hi Christine, thanks so much for inviting me to
visit your blog.

1.What or who inspired you to
start writing?

That’s a tricky question. Some people come from
families of doctors or lawyers; I come from a family of writers. My grandmother
kept a journal for most of her life, my father is a journalist, and my sister
and cousin are both published authors, so I guess it’s in the genes. However,
if I had to identify one person who inspired me to think of my writing as more
than just a childish hobby, it would have to be my high school English teacher,
Catherine MacGregor. She is one of those very special teachers who is able to
really connect with her students. Her encouragement of my creative writing
endeavors gave me the confidence to consider making writing my career—first in
media/corporate communications and now writing fiction. The Doubting Heart is
dedicated to her.

2.How did you come up with ideas
for your books?

That’s a great question. Usually a random thought
or idea pops into my head and if it sticks, I slowly weave a story around it.
For example, The Doubting Heart was originally called Wildhorse Pass. The idea and the title came to me when I misread a
sign while driving along a highway on the Bruce Peninsula, in Ontario. I
thought “hey, that’s a neat name for a place,” and started to wonder about what
type of place it would be and what would go on there. I don’t know what sort of
mood I was in but I kept thinking about doubting your senses and mistaken
identity, and slowly a plot formed. The title of the book changed, when I
realized there was more about this group of people that I wanted to explore. The
Doubting Heart became the second book in my Heart’s Desire series.

3.What components are necessary
for the genre of this novel?

There is a lot of satisfaction in writing (and
reading) romance because you know the ending before you start. The books follow
a traditional path: two people meet and fall in love (okay, some subgenres may
have more than two), something keeps them apart, and they overcome the obstacle
and live happily-ever after. You’d think the format would be limiting, but all
you have to do is look at the number of romances written and the statistics that
show it’s the most-read genre in fiction to realize that all kinds of
combinations and permutations are possible. I like adding a bit of suspense to
my stories, others set their stories in the past or in the future—or in a
galaxy far, far away—and some involve non-human creatures or partly human
creatures. How the author uses these elements, and many more, is what creates
uniqueness for each story, and that’s what is so exciting about the genre.
Pretty much anything goes.

4.If you could be one of the characters
from any of your books, who would it be and why?

I really like the minor character of Carmelina Hawke. She is in only
one scene of The Doubting Heart (but it’s an important one) and is a
recurring character in the series, playing a larger role in the first book, The
Hungry Heart, and the almost completed third book, The Forsaken Heart.
Carmelina is a smart, intelligent, well-organized woman who provides great
insight and advice—all things I strive for, but fear I fall short on. Even
though she is going through her own trials in her marriage (which could be
resolved in a future book ), she is a great and considerate friend.

5.Do you belong to a critique
group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?

A few years ago I belonged to a structured critique
group. There were originally five of us, and then four, and then we all moved
in different directions. One is writing screenplays, one is writing
non-fiction, and I’m the only one still writing romantic fiction. This group
was crucial to my ability to complete my first few books. They kept me focused
and kept me writing—I didn’t want to be the one who showed up at our meeting
with nothing to present. At the moment, I don’t have a critique group, but I do
have one person I consider a critique partner. She isn’t actively writing
fiction herself, but she understands what I’m trying to do with my stories and
she keeps the work honest. She reads the first draft of my chapters as I’m
writing them and if something isn’t working she lets me know. It’s a great
help.

6.When did you first decide to
submit your work? Please tell us what or who encouraged you to take this big
step?

As I said before, I have always written and wanted
to pursue that as a career. After getting a graduate degree in journalism, I
worked for many years in corporate communications where my days were spent
writing speeches, magazine articles, press releases, annual reports, web
content—you name it, I wrote it. But over time, I found this type of writing
less inspiring; my creative muse was shriveling up from disuse. I took a romance-writing
course and almost immediately felt my love of writing returning. Even my
business writing improved. But with two kids, a husband, and a full-time job,
the opportunity to write for myself was scarce and it was a low priority. A
friend told me I was looking at this all wrong. I was a writer by profession.
My job required me to write to deadlines with the idea that my work would be
read. She suggested I take the same approach to my fiction writing. It was
great advice.

7.What is the best and worst
advice you ever received? (regarding writing or publishing)

The best advice I’ve ever received came from
literary agent Steven Axelrod at the Romance Writers of America conference a
few years ago. He said the best thing an author can do for her career is to
write the next book. I don’t think this advice is unique to him, but at the
time, my first book had just been released and I immersed in the promotion and
marketing game. His point is that while authors need to promote their work,
they need to realize that time spent promoting is time away from their main
job, writing.

The worst advice is something “everyone” likes to
tell you: write what you know. Most of us lead pretty mundane lives. Sorry, but
that’s not what I’m looking for when I pick up a book. I want something
different, something exciting. One of the things I love most about writing is
the opportunity to learn about new places (coming from Canada, it’s almost
always some place warm), and getting into the skin of personalities totally
unlike my own. I live my life every day. I don’t want to read about it in a
book.

8.Do you outline your books or
just start writing?

When I start a book I generally have an outline of where I want to go
and some key things that need to happen. I fill in the rest as I’m writing.
More often than can be pure coincidence, I’ll get to a point where I need
something to happen in a book in order to propel the story forward—something I
hadn’t thought I’d planned for. Then I’ll realize I’ve already set in motion
all the elements I need to create the very situation I need. Whenever that
happens, I wonder if I’ve subconsciously got the whole story written and my
brain is slowly releasing it to me so I can have the same enjoyment of
discovery as a reader.

9.Have you started your next
project? If so, can you share a little bit about your book?

At the moment, I am finishing the third book in the Heart’s Desire series, tentatively
titled The Forsaken Heart. This concludes the original story arc and
wraps up a bunch of loose ends from The Hungry Heart and The
Doubting Heart. This story focuses on Anna Graham, the cousin of the
heroes in the two other books. My workingblurb is: When Anna Graham marries Callum Hart she’ll finally receive
her uncles’ agreement for her to take over the family ranch. Will the return
Jackson, of Cal’s brother and her first love, throws it all in jeopardy?

10.What is your favorite reality show?

I was a big fan of Survivor right from the very
first season. After about 10 seasons of the show, however, my interest waned
and I stopped watching it. Then, a few years ago, my kids began to watch it. I
joined them and was struck anew by the genius of the show’s premise: in order
to win, you need the support of the very people you’ve beaten. You can gain a
lot of insight into what makes people tick by watching Survivor; it’s been the
catalyst for some very interesting family discussions.

11.If you were a casting director for the film
version of your book, who would play your lead roles?

My husband always jokes that he and I were the models for the cover of The
Doubting Heart. It’s true, we do somewhat resemble the artist’s
rendering—or at least we did many years ago. In terms of casting for a movie:
Chris Hemsworth has the size and intensity to play the hero, Chad Graham.For Shelby Holt, I see Emma Stone in the
part, although at 5’6” she’s a little tall for my petite heroine. But that’s
what Hollywood magic is all about, right?

12.Anything else you might want to add?

I mentioned a secondary character, Carmelina
Hawke, earlier. I often find myself drawn to minor characters when I read books
and really enjoy writing them. Carmelina is almost too perfect—beautiful and smart and wise. In The Hungry Heart, the hero’s
grandmother, Libby, is irreverent and irrepressible almost to an extreme, and
she has a lot of fun at the hero’s expense. I think you can get away with
making secondary characters a little over-the-top because they don’t have to
carry the book. I’d love to know what others think. Who are your favorite
secondary characters and why?

Brenda will be awarding one commenter at every stop a digital
download of her new short story, Father
of the Bride?, the first in The Wild Rose Press’s Dearly Beloved series, and one randomly drawn commenter on the
tour will receive a $50 Amazon gift card.

Excerpt:

“Don’t…say...a…word,” Chad spat out between
clenched teeth. He grabbed her chin and turned her head from side to side. And
then, satisfied, turned away and spoke to Pete. “Get up, you. Go wait by the
horses for the rest of the group to return.”

Pete obeyed, scurrying through the brush as though
he couldn’t get away quickly enough.

“Just what in hell do you think you were doing?”
Chad turned back to Shelby, anger still distorting his face.

She felt the prickle of tears behind her eyes. She was
so relieved—and so mortified. She shook her head, unable to speak.

“Do you have no sense, woman? You can’t spend the
evening drinking and flirting with a single man on vacation and expect he’s
going to leave it at the door. Not to mention the fact he’s a guest at the
ranch. No fraternizing with the guests, remember?”

Shelby’s humiliation was quickly being replaced by
her own anger. “Who do you think you are to lecture me on my behavior? You and
Charisma can’t even keep your hands off each other for one evening—and in front
of all the guests and their children. Besides, I could have handled Pete. He’s
just a little drunk, that’s all.”

“Really? Well then next time, I won’t bother,” he
said.

Neither moved as they locked eyes, each daring the
other to look away first. Finally, Chad turned. “Let’s go.”

Shelby wiped away a traitorous tear with the sleeve
of her jacket. Who was she kidding? She couldn’t have stopped Pete by herself.
Chad was right. She had allowed a situation with an unfamiliar man to accelerate
out of her control. She didn’t want to consider what would have happened if
Chad hadn’t come to her rescue.

Oh, God! It’s starting all over again.

AUTHOR Bio and
Links:

A
writer all her life, Brenda Gayle returned to her love of fiction after more
than 20 years in the world of corporate communications—although some might
argue there is plenty of opportunity for fiction-writing there, too. She holds
a Master's degree in journalism and an undergraduate degree in psychology. A
fan of many genres, Brenda is drawn to contemporary romance and enjoys creating
deeply emotional stories with elements of mystery and suspense.

Thanks Ingeborg. My publisher has discounted the first book, The Hungry Heart, for the duration of my blog tour so it's easier to get into the series. You can check out Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ARe or Bookstrand.

Hi Lyra,The Doubting Heart is book 2 in the series. I'm finishing up book 3, which completes the main story arc. I have some ideas for stories with a few of the secondary characters in the series so I'm hopeful we'll have quite a few more books to come. Thanks for stopping by.

I’ve used random.org to generate the winner of my new short story, Father of the Bride? The winner is Emily. I’ll be in touch with the download instructions.

Don’t forget I’m giving away a copy of Father of the Bride? at each stop on my blog tour and a $50 Amazon GC to someone who comments from the whole tour–-the more you comment, the more entries you get. You can follow my blog stops at http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.ca/2012/12/nbtm-tour-doubting-heart-by-brenda-gayle.html